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Changes to Intestacy Law

Changes to Intestacy Law

New legislation came into force on 1st October 2014 concerning how an estate in the UK is handled if someone dies without a will.

The new law will mean the entire estate is passed to the spouse or civil partner as long as there are no children. Until the change the estate would have been shared between the spouse or civil partner, the deceased’s siblings and surviving parents. For those with children the spouse will inherit a ‘statutory legacy’ of £250,000, all personal belongings and half of the estate, with the children inheriting the remaining half.

Complexities of course occur, particularly when it comes to partners who may be separated or estranged, or when step-children are involved. As a result it is therefore important to consider that whilst these improvements may better reflect modern society, the only way to ensure that your estate passes as you want it to is to make a Will. To find out how we can help, please contact us.

This entry was posted on Friday, 3rd October 2014 at 10:51 am and is filed under Financial Planning, News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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